Come Home
by Squeegee Beckinhime
Summary: Jess was sent home after the car crash in season 2, but when Rory goes to visit him, he's not as healthy as he was when he left. Can she convince him to 'come home' before its too late?
1. Discoveries

**Chapter 1**

It had been almost a week since the car accident. Rory's arm was in a cast and recovering nicely and Jess had been sent back to New York to live with his mom by Luke.

Rory was sad that he had been sent home to New York and frankly she was sick of the people including her own mother who kept accusing him of being a 'bad kid'. It wasn't his fault that a furry thing ran out into the road and yet everyone blamed him like he was on a suicide mission trying to take Rory with him.

Lorelai and Rory had not been in the diner since the accident, her mother denied it but Rory knew that she and Luke had obviously argued. She also knew that it was probably her mother's doing, blaming Jess for the accident and yelling at Luke about it; Poor Luke.

It was a Monday morning and Rory was getting ready for school, Lorelai was in the kitchen cooking pop tarts and reading a fashion magazine. At times there was awkward silence in the Gilmore house, Lorelai not knowing what to say to Rory because she knew she was missing Jess and Rory not knowing what to say to Lorelai because she kind of blamed her for him getting sent away.

Rory came out of her room and asked her mother if she had seen a book of hers. "What one is it?" Lorelai asked. "The Howl" Rory replied. Lorelai told her daughter that she hadn't seen it but would keep an eye out for it. Rory nodded and headed for the door ready for her journey to school.

As she approached the school gates she felt a sick feeling in her stomach. She couldn't do it, she couldn't go on another day and pretend that everything was ok and convince herself that she wasn't missing Jess. She had to tell him that it wasn't his fault and she had to tell him that they were still friends and that she missed him.

For the first time in her life Rory did something she had never done before, she cut school. She went to the local bus station and got on a bus that was heading to New York. She had no idea where she would go after she got off the bus as she didn't know where Jess lived but she had to find him.

After about an hour and a half drive which seemed like forever, she was standing in the New York bus depot.

She had no idea where she was going, she tried to remember if Luke or Jess had ever mentioned anything about where Jess lived before Stars Hollow. After a few moments she remembered Jess mentioning something about "you go pass the sub way, past the hot dog vender named Stan and you turn left". Of course there was no detail to the description; after all it was Jess that had told her.

She spent the next hour trying to finding a subway with a guy named Stan that sold hot dogs outside. After what seemed like forever she found a subway with a man standing by a hotdog trolley shouting out "hotdogs get em' while there hot".

She took a breath and walked over to him. "Excuse me, are you Stan?" she asked nervously. "Yeah I'm Stan, can I help ya kid?" She shook her head and said "no, you just have". She smiled and walked away.

She got to the end of the street and turned left. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. It almost looked like what she expected the inside of her and her mother's coffee filled stomachs to look like. She was standing in a smelly, disgustingly dirty street that made her shake to her very core.

She took a few steps forward and stopped. Did she want to go any further, was Jess worth all this, was she going to be safe on her own in this...hovel.

Of course she wanted to go further, of course Jess was worth all this, and no, she might not exactly be safe but she had her cell and her pepper spray on her keys if she needed it.

She looked around and saw dirtiness everywhere. How was she going to find Jess?

She saw a group of kids sitting on some stairs a little further down the street; she approached them slowly and said "hi", they all looked up at her. She continued "I'm looking for my friend, he is about this tall and he has dark hair, he always has a book with him".

One of the children pointed to a building across the street, she looked and saw how run down it looked; no wonder Jess never wanted to talk about where he came from.

"Number 32" said another kid. Rory nodded and thanked them. She walked across the street and saw that main door leading into the apartment block was open; in fact, the lock had been taken off all together.

She swallowed and headed inside. The smell was disgusting. The walls were covered in graffiti and there was dirt all over the floor.

She looked around and saw a map on the wall. It was barely readable but she could just about make out that apartment 32 was on the 4th floor. She slowly made her way up the stairs.

She made it to her destination. By now, her heart was pounding more than it had been the whole time she had been in New York. She walked down the hall to apartment 32 and knocked on the door.

She listened carefully. She heard a bottle roll and heard a slurring voice shout "there's someone at the door".

She then heard footsteps approaching the door. She was the most terrified she had ever been in her life. Should she stand there, should she run, what was coming to answer the door? She was just turning away when the door opened slightly.

She stood frozen until she heard a familiar voice say "Rory?" She turned slowly and saw what she assumed was Jess. She stood frozen in horror at what she was looking at.

"Jess?" she asked. He came out of the apartment and shut the door behind him as not to aggravate his mother. "What are you doing here?" he asked her in a low tone.

She couldn't speak. She must have been in shock. He didn't look like this when he left Stars Hollow, what had happened to him? He was covered in bruises and scrapes all over his face.

Eventually she found her voice again. "What happened to you?" she asked. He looked down at the floor not answering her. "Jess" she said slightly louder. "Shhh" he sounded while grabbing her arm and moving her down the hall.

"Jess, answer me, what happened to you?" He shrugged still not looking at her. She was horrified at his appearance. He noticed the cast on her arm and asked "is your arm ok?"

She huffed and said "you're standing here, covered in bruises, scratches and scrapes and you're asking me if I'm ok?" again he didn't answer.

"Jess, please answer me, what happened to you?" He swallowed and began talking in a barely audible tone.

"Luke sent me home".

She was confused as to what he was getting at until he continued.

"I came home and my mom was mad that I was back. Then her new boyfriend decided to use my face as a punch bag because I wouldn't tell them why I was sent home. Then I had to tell them or else he probably would have killed me"

Rory just stood there staring at him, a tear rolling down her cheek. "Ok, you're coming home with me" she grabbed his arm and straight away regretted it when he flinched in pain. She immediately let go and began to pull up his sleeve to see his arm. He pulled away from her and told her to go home.

Was he being serious, did he really think she was going to leave him there. "You really think I'm going to leave you here?" she asked.

He looked at her and said "I can't go back even if I wanted to. Luke wouldn't take me back and to be honest, I'd rather take my chances here then to go back there; because living in a town where you know that everyone hates you makes this all seem not that bad".

Rory was trying to hold back the tears; he would actually prefer to live a life where he was being beaten constantly then go back to a town where a few people disliked him.

She told him her thoughts only to be snickered at. "It's not that easy Rory, do you know what it feels like to wake up every day and know that everyone within a four mile radius hates you? It's a horrible feeling and it makes you feel dead inside, at least living here I feel something, granted pain isn't that great to feel but it's something".

She didn't know what to say. She was trying to hold back tears but at the same time she wanted to yell at him so badly. Eventually, she did both.

"I care about you, I have for a long time, I like you Jess and I know you know because you kept flirting with me when no one was around. And Luke, Luke cares about you so much and all you do is treat him like dirt..." Jess looked at her and began shouting back.

"He cares huh, if he cares so much then why did he send me back here, I told him I never wanted to come back, granted I never told him why but he did anyway. He didn't want me there, no one does".

Rory shook her head and said crying "please come home". Jess looked at her and replied "I am home".

He told her to go back to Stars Hollow and walked away. She stood there shaking. She didn't know what to do, she felt as though she was going to drop. She wiped her eyes and began to walk away.

The bus ride home was a long and lonely one. She felt terrible. The more she thought about it, the more she blamed her mother and the town for Jess's current situation. If they had just given him a chance then they might not have been so hot headed to send him back to New York.

To be continued...

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><p><strong>Please Review :-)<strong>


	2. The Rescue

_**Chapter Two**_

Rory arrived home less than happy. She was sad and angry and mad all at once. She stood outside of the house worried about what she might say to her mother if she were there. She bit her lip and entered the house.

She saw her mother sitting in the kitchen but could not face her at that particular moment so she decided to go straight into her room. She dropped her bag onto the floor and sat on her bed.

Lorelai walked into the bedroom and stood by the doorway. "So, I got a call from your school today, they wanted to know if you were sick as you weren't in any of your lessons" Lorelai said in a questioning tone.

Rory rolled her eyes and said "I had some business to take care of". Lorelai snickered and walked further into the room. She stood with her arms folded and began to question Rory. "Well I want to know where you were and why you weren't at school and what business was so important that you cut school for it".

Rory was trying hard to control her temper, she didn't need this at this moment in time; she needed to be alone to sort her head and to try and make sense of what had happened earlier in the day.

Lorelai was still questioning her. She would not stop and give her daughter a chance to explain and her tone of voice was rising and becoming more and more patronising by the second.

Rory exploded. She couldn't hold it in any longer. She had to let out all of the anger and frustration. She stood up and went face to face with her mother.

"You want to know where I was so bad huh? I was in New York" Lorelai looked at her speechless, Rory had never yelled at her like this. "I was in New York seeing Jess, because I miss him and I wanted to tell him that the accident wasn't his fault and that I wanted him to come back to Stars Hollow and it didn't go exactly how I'd planned. He was bruised and beaten up and it's all because no one in this town gave him a chance and he was sent back to his mom and her new boyfriend who hits him and I asked him to come back to Stars Hollow and he said no because he can't stand to live in a town where people hate him and it hurt that he feels that way and it hurts that one of the people who make him feel that way is my own mother".

Lorelai stood there not knowing what to say. She tried to speak but couldn't. Rory stood there fuming. She needed to leave, she needed to get of the house and she needed to get away from her mother.

She grabbed a jacket and walked past Lorelai who was still standing there stunned. She walked out the back door and went to the one place that made her happy in the town, the bridge.

She arrived there a little while later. She walked over to her favourite spot and sat down. She felt incredibly uncomfortable. This was her and Jess's space. She felt alone and couldn't help but think of some of the things they had talked about when they had been at the bridge together.

"_You see right over there, that's where Luke pushed me in". _

"_How comes your only nice to me?"_

She couldn't stay there any longer; her favourite place in Stars Hollow had now become a sad and lonely one. She got up and decided to walk around town instead.

She had been out for a little while just circling the town. She was just turning the corner on Plum Street when she bumped into Luke.

"Sorry" they both said in unison. They stood there in awkward silence for a few seconds. Luke broke the uncomfortable atmosphere by asking Rory how her arm was. "It's ok" she replied timidly.

He nodded and looked like he was going to continue to where ever he was going until Rory spoke again. "I went to New York to see Jess". Luke stood surprised by her comment. "What?" he asked.

She explained what had happened right from leaving at the school gates right up to the argument with her mother that had brought her to her very spot. Luke nodded trying to keep up with her.

Luke stood there for a few seconds processing all of what she had said. He then proceeded to storm through town to his truck, Rory following close behind.

Once there she asked him what he was doing. "I'm going to bring Jess home" he replied. She smiled and asked if she could come. Luke was unsure. He knew that getting Jess back to Stars Hollow could be dangerous especially if Liz's boyfriend was home at the time.

He decided that there was only one thing to do; he had to see Lorelai.

He drove himself and Rory over to the crap shack. They both got out and Rory went inside to get her mother. Lorelai walked outside and felt unsure about seeing Luke so red and angry looking.

"I'm going to New York to get Jess back" he said bluntly not giving her a chance to answer. "I want to go with him" Rory added. Lorelai just stood there staring.

"Could come with me" Luke asked sincerely. "If Jess is in as bad a shape as what Rory said then I'm going to need you to stop me from killing Liz's boyfriend".

Lorelai nodded and said "it's the least I can do. I'm partly responsible for this" she said sadly. Rory felt slightly bad for what she had said to her mother earlier but she stood her ground.

They got into Luke's truck and headed to New York to get Jess home. The only thought going through Luke's head was _'will we get to him in time, or will it be too late?'_

To be continued...


	3. Hospitals

_**Chapter 3**_

The drive to New York was silent. Lorelai was still in shock at her and Rory's confrontation, Rory was nervous about going back to where Jess lived and her argument with her mother and Luke was trying to stay as calm as he could but could not help but worry about what he was going to find when he got there.

After a long and agonising drive they eventually made it to their destination. Rory directed them to the block where Jess lived. Luke was turning all shades of red walking down the street. To think that he had actually sent his nephew back to this grimy place made him feel sick.

Lorelai looked around feeling guilty also. To think that for the past two weeks Jess had had to stay in this place that he called home.

They arrived at the building and they all went inside together. There was a drunken man asleep on the stairs as they made their way up to the fourth floor.

Rory took them to the door and stood back with her mother while Luke went in front and knocked on the door.

They heard some moving about and some slurred voices. The door was yanked open by man who looked like he was about to pass out from being drunk and disorderly. He checked Luke up and down and said "who are you?"

Luke could feel his anger rising, to think that this man, this stranger had hurt his nephew made it almost unbearable to stay calm. He felt Lorelai's hand touch his arm and it instantly calmed him. He looked at the man in front of him and said "where's Jess?"

The man snickered and asked "what's that little punk done now?" Luke wanted nothing more than to hit the guy that stood in front of him.

"He's my nephew and I've come to take him home" Luke told rather then asked. The man laughed and said "he aint going nowhere, he is staying here".

Luke pushed passed him nearly knocking the man over. "Jess" he called out. "Big brother?" he heard a slurred voice say. He turned to see Liz walking over to him, zig zagging her way across the room. She tried to hug him but Luke pulled away.

He looked at his sister like she was no more a stranger then the man who answered the door. He was disgusted that she would live like this and let a stranger treat her son in such an awful way.

Luke called out to Jess again after he didn't appear. "Where is he?" he asked Liz coldly. "I think he's sleeping" she slurred back.

Luke began to check the rooms of the apartment in search for his nephew. Every time he opened the door he would get a pungent smell of mould and alcohol. He was at the last door and opened it slowly.

Inside on a mattress on the floor was a curled up form. He slowly walked over to it. "Jess?" he asked.

The figure slowly turned its head to look at him. "My God" Luke said in shock. He looked down at his nephew who had blood running down from various wounds on his face. He noticed blood dripping freely and heavily from his hands too. His nephew's eyes were nearly swollen shut.

He went and knelt beside him and put a hand on his nephews shoulder. "Ok kid, were leaving, can you walk?" he asked in a calm tone.

Jess nodded and let his uncle help him stand. Luke could see Jess was going to need help so he put his arm around his waist to give him some support.

They slowly walked into the living room. Rory gasped when she saw Jess as did Lorelai who by now felt terrible for what she and the town had done.

Liz looked at Luke with Jess and asked what he was doing. Luke stopped to look at her and said "I'm taking him back with me, you're never going to hurt him again do you hear me, if you try and come anywhere near him ill have you arrested. No sister of mine would do this to their child".

Liz was silent, Luke was right and she knew it. David, Liz's boyfriend was standing by the door way. "You're not taking him" he slurred at Luke. Luke sat Jess down on a nearby chair and told David to move out of his way. When David didn't do so, Luke grabbed him and threw him up against the wall. He made him look at Jess who was leaning forward, blood dripping from his face to the floor.

"That's my nephew. He's seventeen years old and you did this to him. You're lucky I don't kill you for what you've done to him" he said, his voice breaking slightly. He threw David to the ground and proceeded in helping Jess walk out of the apartment, drops of blood leading a trail wherever they went.

Once they had made it down the stairs Luke helped Jess get in the back of the truck. He had asked Lorelai to get in the back with his nephew as she knew more about first aid then he did. Rory got in the front with Luke as they drove to the hospital.

Lorelai used some supplies Luke had in a first aid kit under his seat to try and slow the bleeding on Jess's hands. As she applied pressure he nearly yelped in pain.

Luke was bibbing at people as they were stuck in traffic. He took the time to turn to his nephew and ask what had happened.

Jess could barely speak. Luke guessed that that was due to the hand marks on his nephew's throat. "...Mirror..." Jess mumbled. Luke looked at him questioningly. "What?" he asked. Jess swallowed showing pain as he did, but managed to say "he...he threw me...into a mirror".

Luke could feel his blood boil. If he hadn't of been in traffic and if Jess hadn't of needed medical help then nothing would have stopped him from turning the truck around and going back and killing his sister's boyfriend.

The traffic began to clear and Luke was driving as quickly as he could to the nearest hospital. Lorelai noticed Jess closing his eye's but told him he had to stay awake. Rory looked at her mom with questioning eyes. "He might have a concussion and if he does, he can't go to sleep, it could be dangerous". Rory nodded and she couldn't help but let some tears drop.

After an agonizing drive they pulled up outside of the hospital. Luke helped Jess get out of the truck and was supporting most of his nephew's weight since he was nearly unconscious. They made their way into the A+E and over to the reception desk.

"I need some help here, my nephew was thrown into a mirror and beaten" Luke said shakily. The nurse at the desk didn't even bother to look up. She simply picked up a clip board and put it on the counter and said "fill out these forms and wait over there, a doctor will be with you shortly".

Luke went red with anger. He was just about to say something when Lorelai began yelling. "Hey" she shouted causing the nurse to look up. "My friend just said that his nephew was thrown through a mirror and beaten. He is bleeding heavily and is barely conscious and you want us to fill out forms and wait 'over there' for a doctor. Are you serious?"

The nurse looked at a loss for words. She stood up and walked over to a middle aged man in a white coat who was standing by an x-ray screen.

He walked over quickly and began to asses Jess's injuries. He asked Luke to take him into a nearby room. The doctor called for some assistance and they all hurried inside.

"Sir, I need you to wait outside" a timid nurse said. "No, I'm not leaving my nephew" Luke replied. The nurse tried again but still Luke refused. Eventually the doctor asked for Luke to go and wait outside and to fill out the forms at the reception while they began treating Jess.

Luke grudgingly turned to walk out with the Gilmores until he heard a broken and battered voice say "Luke...don't...don't leave me". Luke decided there and then that no one were going to move him from that room unless they knocked him unconscious and drag his body out.

To be continued...

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><p>Please Review :-)<p>

I am very insecure about my writing, so please review x


	4. Its Not Your Fault!

_**Thank you to all who have reviewed my story so far...i love getting feedback and ideas. **_

**_Enjoy this new chapter and hopefully i will have Chapter 5 up in a few days :-)_**

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 4<strong>_

Rory and Lorelai were waiting outside and had been for almost an hour when Luke emerged from Jess's room. He was pale and he looked tired.

"How is he" Rory asked nervously standing with her mother. Luke brushed a hand through his hair. "The doctor's have him stable and comfortable. They cleaned up his cuts and stitched up and bandaged his hands. They found loads of deep bruises but they said they will heal over time. His throat is swollen so he's voice sounds hoarse, they've got him on morphine".

Rory could feel fresh hot tears rolling slowly down her cheeks. She wiped her eyes and said "I'm going to get some coffee" and with that she walked off leaving Lorelai and Luke alone for the first time since there argument two weeks before.

Luke sat down and stared at his shoes. He hated hospitals and he knew how much Jess did too and it was killing him seeing someone he loved in such pain and confusion.

Lorelai sat next to Luke and remained silent. She honestly did not know what to say. She felt guilty and hurt that Rory blamed her for Jess's situation but she honestly couldn't blame her daughter, Lorelai knew she reacted harshly about having Jess sent home.

"He didn't mean to crash the car" Luke said quietly, not breaking his eye contact with the floor. Lorelai looked at Luke and could see how much he was hurting. Her heart broke. "I know" she replied.

"I over reacted and I'm sorry. I just panicked and I yelled at you and you had to send him home and now, he's here and I feel terrible". Luke nodded as she talked.

"I'm so sorry Luke, I'm sorry that I didn't listen to you when you said Jess would never hurt Rory on purpose and I'm sorry that I yelled at you and I'm sorry that the town ganged up on Jess and I'm sorry I was a part of it. Please, can you forgive me?" Lorelai had never felt so vulnerable.

Luke exhaled loudly and sat back on his chair, arms crossed. His silence made Lorelai even more uncomfortable. He turned to look at her and said "He's going to hate me when he is fully awake and not so doped up on pain meds" Luke said quietly. Lorelai squinted and said "why would he hate you?"

Luke shook his head and replied "I sent him home. He told me he never wanted to go back there, he never told me why but I know now that it was because he was to ashamed to admit where he came from. And I was supposed to look after him and instead I played a part in him ending up in here".

Lorelai felt awful, Luke had tried so hard with Jess and he had done a good job of being his guardian and yet here he was questioning anything and everything he had ever done to help the boy.

Lorelai put a hand on Luke's arm. "Luke, he isn't going to hate you. This wasn't your fault. The town, me, we didn't give him a chance. We labelled him as trouble as soon as he got to Stars Hollow and we blocked out the thought of him actually being a descent kid. Please don't blame yourself".

Luke said nothing. He just sat with his arms crossed staring at the plain white walls in front of him. Lorelai noticed his silence and decided to be quiet also. She had said her bit and now all she could do was wait and see what the outcome with Luke was. Would he forgive her?

A little while later Rory came back with three cups of hot coffee. She handed one to Lorelai and one to Luke and took a seat next to her mother. "Has anything changed?" Rory asked as she took a sip from her steaming cup.

Both adults shook their heads. She leant forward so she could see Luke and asked him if she could go and see Jess. Luke was hesitant for a moment but said "you can if you want. Be warned he's heavily sedated and not making much sense. If he's sleeping, try not to wake him; he needs to rest". Rory simply nodded and headed into Jess's room again leaving Luke and Lorelai feeling uncomfortable.

Rory closed the door behind her. She stood staring at Jess lying so still in the bed. She didn't know this Jess, he wasn't the Jess that she got annoyed at or laughed with; this Jess was hurt and vulnerable. She often wished that she could see a softer more vulnerable side of him but not like this.

She walked slowly over to his bed and stood by it. She lifted her hand to hold his but stopped when she saw that he had a drip leading from it. She took the time to study his face. Even in his sleep he looked scared and in pain and it broke her heart.

She quietly sat down on the chair next to his bed and made herself comfortable. She leant forward onto the bed and rested her head on her arms watching Jess as he slept.

Lorelai had fallen asleep on the chair outside, she leant her head on Luke who sat staring at the wall. He was tired but could not sleep, he was hungry but could not eat and he was trying to forgive Lorelai but was still so angry.

Back in Jess's room, Rory had also fallen asleep. She slowly awoke when she felt something on her arm. She sat up to see Jess's hand on her arm and him looking at her.

She stood up and held his hand. "Hey" she said quietly. "Hey" he replied husky, his throat was killing him.

She asked if he were ok but then felt stupid for asking. He nodded slightly and asked her if Luke were there. She nodded and told him that he was outside. He asked her if she could get him. Rory nodded sympathetically as she headed outside to fetch Luke for Jess.

"Luke" she said quietly so she didn't startle him or wake her mother, "Jess is awake, he's asking for you". Luke thanked her and got up without waking Lorelai.

Jess turned his head towards the door as he saw his uncle walk inside and over to him. Jess could see that Luke looked nervous and tired and angry all at once. Luke put a reassuring hand on his nephews shoulder and asked if he were ok. Jess nodded.

Luke stood there not wanting to look at Jess because of all the cuts and bruises on his face but he didn't speak either as he didn't know what to say.

Jess could tell, he looked at his uncle and said "it's not your fault" Luke looked like he were about to cry. "I sent you back there; I listened to what other people were saying instead of listening to myself. I sent you back and look what happened to you". Jess hated seeing his uncle like this. "It's not your fault Luke, I screwed up...I hurt Rory and you did what you had to do, please don't blame yourself for this". Luke nodded and turned his face away to hide his tears from his nephew.

Luke was a proud man, but at this moment in time, he had never felt more vulnerable or alone.

Jess looked at his uncle and said "I'm tired" Luke nodded and took this as his queue to leave. Just as he was about to turn around and head for the door he heard Jess say "stay with me" Luke turned to look at his nephew, Jess then added "please". Luke nodded and smiled slightly as he sat down on the chair next to his nephew's bed.

Rory sat outside and wondered what was going on in Jess's room. She turned to look at her mother and sighed. She couldn't help but think to herself...would things between the Gilmore Girls ever be the same again?

To be continued...

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><p><strong>Please Review :-)<strong>


	5. Dont Hide From Me

**Thank you to all that have reviewed so far and those who are following my story! Here is Chapter 5...i hope you enjoy. x ((Big Smiles))**

**Also: Some of you are slightly confused as you remember seeing this story published a while back then start again from Ctr-1. The reason for this is because as i was getting hardly any reviews, i lost the drive to continue the story and became insecure about my writing. Also, before i had published all of the chapters i had written so far so there was nothing to get people saying "wow good story, cant wait for more" so i took the story off of FF, amended it and wrote more and i am now putting on one chapter at a time. I hope that clears up the confusion...also thanks to _Polly_ and _Jeremy Shane_ for remembering my story from over a month ago x**

**I'll stop rambling now and let you read the story :-)**

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 5<strong>_

Luke was sitting beside his nephew's bed watching him sleep. He desperately wanted to sleep himself but he was afraid to close his eyes, afraid that when he woke his nephew might be gone, where he didn't know but gone none the less. Instead he just sat and stared at Jess, he wiped stray tears away quickly so that no one would see he'd been crying.

Outside Lorelai had woken up and she and Rory sat in silence. A doctor came walking past and went into Jess's room. Rory stood up waiting for the doctor or Luke to come out and update them on what was going on.

After a little while Luke walked outside while the doctor checked Jess over. Rory walked over to him and Lorelai looked up at him. "Is he ok?" Rory asked. Luke nodded and shrugged at the same time. "He's sleeping; the doctor's just checking him over. He said he can go home in a day or two". Rory nodded.

Luke watched as Lorelai yawned and said "you should go home, I'm gonna stay, I'll call you if anything changes". Rory nodded sadly, she didn't want to go, she wanted...needed to stay.

Reluctantly she let her mother walk her down the corridor and down to the street. Lorelai called for a cab. The ride home was again tense and silent. When they got home Rory went straight to her room leaving Lorelai standing in the kitchen alone.

It was 5am and Luke was sitting in Jess's room. He had given up on staying awake and was drifting off to sleep when he heard a noise. He awoke to find Jess sitting up sweating and panting heavily. Luke stood and looked over his nephew. Luke didn't know what to do so he just put a hand on his nephew's shoulder.

Jess turned to look at his uncle. Luke could see the fear and pain in his nephew's eyes and it killed him. Jess turned away to hide a tear that forced its way from his eye. _Like uncle like nephew._

After he had calmed down and gained his composure, Jess asked Luke when he could go home. Luke told him what the doctor had said.

Luke told Jess that he was going back with him to Star's Hollow and that he was going to the courts to get full custody of him if he were ok with it. At first Jess didn't know what to say but he knew one thing...he didn't ever want to go back to live with his mom or her boyfriend of the month. Jess told Luke to do what he had to do. Luke nodded and ran a hand through his nephew's hair.

It had been two days since Rory had seen Jess. He was coming home today and she was so happy to see him. Lorelai wasn't exactly thrilled but she did prefer that he was back in the Hollow instead of the slums he called home.

Luke had gone to collect Jess from the hospital, Rory waited impatiently in the diner for them to arrive. Just when she thought that the time would never come she saw Luke's truck pull up outside of the diner. Rory's heart stopped for a moment when she only saw Luke get out of the truck. But it began to beat again when she saw him walk around to the passenger door and help a weak Jess out.

She couldn't help but smile when she saw them walking up to the door of the diner. Luke opened the door and walked in; he held the door open for Jess and watched him slowly limp in.

Rory whimpered to herself when she saw all the deep cuts and scrapes on his face, his beautiful face. She noticed that his hands were bandaged also.

The diner went silent when he entered and they saw the state he was in. Babette and Miss Patty left almost immediately after _Spreading the gossip around town._

Jess spotted Rory and looked down at the floor. It hurt her slightly. Why wouldn't he look at her, did she do something?

She was about to say hello to him but he walked straight past her and up the stairs to the apartment. Luke noticed the sad and disappointed look on her face and went over to her.

"Don't take it personally; he talked to me about it in the truck. He said he didn't want you seeing him like this". Rory nodded, what Luke had just told her about Jess only made her hurt more. The fact that he didn't want her to see him like this meant that she couldn't be around him; she couldn't comfort him...or more.

She asked Luke if she could go upstairs, at first he was unsure but if anyone could cheer Jess up it would be Rory.

She went up to the apartment and knocked on the door. She heard Jess walking to the door to open it.

Seeing him up close for the first time since the hospital she got to see how sore and bruised his face was. She froze for a second but managed to regain her composure. "Hi" she said nervously.

"Hey" he replied hoarsely. They stood there quietly for a second but Jess broke the moment when he walked away from the door but left it open so she knew she could go in.

She walked into the apartment and closed the door behind her. She watched as he slowly and painfully sat down on the sofa, looking at the floor.

She knew that he was tense; she could tell by the way his shoulders were up higher than usual and the way his hands were made into fists.

"You don't have to hide from me you know; or hide your face".

Jess looked up at her slightly but again looked down. He didn't want Rory to see him in his weakened state. She had already seen enough when she saw him in New York and at the hospital. He was slightly embarrassed although he would never admit it.

She walked over to the sofa and sat down next to him. She felt the tenseness coming from him. She slowly put her hand on top of his and felt how tightly shut his fist was; after a few seconds, she felt him almost immediately relax.

She then told him that she missed him and that she had only wished that they had met again on better circumstances.

He just sat there nodding slowly; then he turned to look at her "Rory i..."

To be continued...

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	6. Fights And Stuff

_**Thank you to all who have reviewed...here is chapter 6...enjoy :-)**_

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 6<strong>_

"Rory...i...i just...um...thanks" Jess managed, finding it hard to get the last word out. Rory looked at him confused "what for?" she asked.

He looked down at the floor and mumbled "for getting me out of there. If you hadn't had got Luke and come and got me I don't...i don't think that I would be...here" he said awkwardly.

Rory felt her heart in her throat, she knew what he meant by 'here' he meant being alive. She wanted to hug him and kiss his wounds better but she couldn't, she was with Dean.

Jess then chose that moment to let his mask drop completely. He cried in front of her. She was taken aback by it. She didn't think Jess was the type to cry but it was obvious that he felt comfortable enough around her to show his feelings, either that or he had finally cracked from all of the pressure he had gone through so far in his life. He wasn't just hurt physically but also hurt mentally.

Rory hesitated at first but then put her arm around his shoulders saying nothing. She didn't know what to say so she thought that the arm gesture would say what she needed to for her and it did. Jess appreciated it although he would never tell her. He had shown her too much already.

Down in the diner, Lorelai was talking to Luke...trying to talk to Luke. "Hey Luke, how are you doing?" she asked. He looked at her and replied "how do you think I'm doing?" he replied with a bitter tone.

"I said I was sorry Luke. I was hurt and upset and I said I was sorry. I wrote you a note, did you get my note. I said sorry like a hundred times" she told him.

Luke continued making a pot of coffee and replied "I got your note. I also liked the Garfield stationary, that's one funny cat. And you said sorry three times, not a hundred, but I understand your need for dramatic effect" he replied blankly.

Lorelai was upset and she wasn't in the mood to fight. She sighed sadly and slowly walked to the door, walking outside and home to the crap shack.

After spending a bit more time with Jess, Rory had left the diner also. She made her way home and felt somewhat at peace that Jess had opened up to her a little.

She walked through the front door and went into the kitchen to get coffee. When she saw her mother there she turned away and went to go into her room.

"Rory, we need to talk" Lorelai told her. "No we don't" Rory replied walking into her room and closing the door.

Lorelai got up and walked into her daughter's bedroom. "Who will mock movies shamelessly with me? Rory, come on. You can't stay mad at me forever?" Lorelai said smiling slightly trying to lighten the mood.

"Wanna bet" Rory replied not looking up from her book. She wasn't in the mood for all of this agitation with her mother.

"Rory, please; you have to understand, I didn't want Jess to get sent home, I didn't mean for him to get sent home. I was mad and upset because you were hurt and it was because of him that you got hurt and I'm sorry that he got hurt too but you can't blame me for being mad at him" Lorelai said, raising her voice slightly.

"I gave him the keys! I told him to drive. He wanted to drive back to Luke's, and I said no. I wanted to keep on driving. That's when we got into the accident. This is just as much my fault as it is his. Maybe more" Rory shouted at her mother.

"Hey, hang on a second" Lorelai said in a calm tone, trying to calm her daughter down.

"I'm sick of this. I'm sick of everyone treating me like I'm a mindless idiot being led around by a guy" Rory replied, shouting again.

"No one is treating you like that" Lorelai answered.

"Everyone is. The whole town is. Taylor, Babette, Miss Patty. Everyone including you is refusing to believe I was as responsible for what happened as Jess was" Rory replied angry.

"Really, were you driving the car?" Lorelai asked her daughter, getting angry also.

"No" Rory answered sadly.

"Then you weren't responsible" Lorelai told her daughter.

"What if it was Dean? What if Dean had been driving? Would everyone assume it was his fault?" Rory asked her mother.

"No because Dean wouldn't have been in an accident. Dean is a much more responsible kid who loves you and would drive responsibly" Lorelai's voice was getting louder which only annoyed Rory more.

"How do you know that Jess wasn't driving responsibly?" Rory asked.

"Hi, it's Jess!" Lorelai shouted.

"Right, Jess is the anti Christ I forgot. He wanted to get in an accident. He's a murderer with a death wish and he wanted to kill us both right?" Rory shouted back.

"I know you think Jess is your friend, but he's not. He's a completely out of control, really angry kid who has no respect for Luke, who has no respect for me" Lorelai continued.

"It was an accident" Rory shouted back to her mother. She couldn't understand why she didn't get that it was an accident. It was no one's fault.

"And he was driving" was Lorelai's answer.

"So no matter what, you're going to choose to blame Jess?" Rory asked her mother.

"Yes, I choose to blame Jess".

"Because you hate him" Rory asked.

"That's right. I'm sorry. When my daughter comes home broken, I get to hate the guy that broke her, that's how it works. You are wearing a cast and I get hate him forever" Lorelai's voice boomed throughout Rory's bedroom.

"Fine" Rory shouted to Lorelai.

"Fine" Lorelai shouted back.

"Fine" Rory shouted again.

They stood there quiet for a while, they had never yelled at each other like that...ever and it scared them both. Rory was the first to break the silence.

"I'm going for a walk" she said sadly while walking past her mother and to the back door. Lorelai nodded and let her daughter have some space.

Rory went to the only place in town where she knew that no one would bother her and she could sit and think...the bridge.

To be continued...

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><p><strong>Please Review :-)<strong>


	7. Makeups And Breakups

_**Chapter 7**_

Rory sat on the bridge, feet dangling off the edge. She watched her reflection in the water, her sad reflection. After sitting there for quite some time, she realised that she had to make up with her mother; she was beginning to understand what it was like for her mother living with her parents. She didn't want to be like that. She likes her mother and they are best friends.

She realised that she had been slightly hard on her mother, maybe even over reactive and over dramatic. Her mother was only trying to protect her but at the time Rory was so worried and upset about Jess that she didn't see it.

She slowly stood up and began to walk home.

Once arriving, she noticed that her mother was nowhere to be seen; she wasn't in the kitchen or living room and she wasn't in Rory's bedroom. She walked up the stairs and found Lorelai in her room, lying on the bed.

Rory walked in slowly and then lay next to her mother. Rory turned her head to look at her then rolled onto her side and put her hand over her mother's waist.

Lorelai turned to look at her daughter and smiled slightly. She then turned onto her side and they lay face to face.

"So, I was thinking earlier, and I think I may have been a little hard on you; I don't want to go as far as saying that I was over dramatic, because I don't like admitting so many of my flaws in one day but I was a little of that too. I'm sorry that I yelled at you and that I couldn't see where you were coming from but I do now. I am still mad that you played a part in getting Jess sent home but, I understand your reasons. You wanted to protect me".

Lorelai looked close to tears. Finally Rory had opened her mind and understood everything that her mother was trying to do for her. She could understand though that her heart may have clouded her judgement...just a little bit.

"Rory, can I ask you something? And don't get mad and don't freak out because we have only just made up and this something that I really need to know ok?" Lorelai said.

Rory nodded and said "Ok, I won't freak out...what is it? Is it bad?"

Lorelai smiled slightly and said "do you like Jess?"

Rory could feel her cheeks begin to burn...was it that obvious that she liked him? All this time she thought she had done pretty well in hiding the fact but obviously she was wrong.

"Umm..." was all she could get out. She wasn't prepared for this kind of question.

"Listen sweets, I'll have to take your stunned silence as a yes to my question, so can I give you some best friend mommy advice?"

Rory nodded.

"Hun, if you really like Jess and you want to try and make a thing of it, then you need to tell Dean. He loves you so much and it's breaking his heart that you have been so distant lately. He doesn't deserve that, it's not fair to him and it's also not fair on yourself, being with Dean if you don't want to be so like I said; if you want to be with Jess then you need to break it off with Dean...and now, before it gets too late and too hard for you to do it. Ok?"

Rory nodded...she had some serious thinking to do.

It was the morning after the make-up and one word was floating around Rory's brain _'breakup'_. She had thought long and hard all night and had decided that her mother was right. It wasn't fair to herself or Dean, she didn't think it was for Jess either, she knew she had flirted with him but that's all that ever happened and she knew it must have killed him seeing her with Dean.

She walked into the kitchen and smiled when her mother handed her a cup of the elixir of life.

She took a huge gulp and sat down, motioning for her mother to do the same.

"I was thinking last night and you're right. I like Jess...and it's not fair on Dean...or me or Jess so today, I'm going to break up with Dean" Rory said confidently to her mother.

"Are you sure that's what you want?" Lorelai asked her daughter.

"I'm sure, more than sure" Rory replied leaving Lorelai nodding at her answer.

Rory had called Dean and asked to meet him later that day; she was busy doing some serious make up shopping with Lorelai.

After returning home from a long day, Rory went into her room to put away what she had purchased. She looked over at her alarm clock and saw that she only had fifteen minutes until Dean arrived. She had put the thought of breaking up with him at the back of her head, what was she supposed to say to him?

"MOM" Rory yelled from her bedroom. Lorelai came running in and stood in front of her daughter. "What, what is it, what's wrong?" she asked worried.

"Dean is going to be here in fifteen minutes, what do I say to him, how do I start the conversation, oh my god, I haven't thought this through, I haven't planned any of what I'm going to say...i"

"Rory honey, calm down. Take a deep breath. Ok, now I'm not going to lie to you, it's not going to be easy, telling Dean that you don't want to be with him anymore but...when he gets here and your face to face, listen to your heart and let it do the talking. You'll be upset and it'll hurt, but that doesn't mean that you don't like Jess or that your making a mistake, it just means that the guy that was in your life for two years, won't be any more" Lorelai explained.

Rory nodded. Just as she was stringing random thoughts into her head, there was a knock at the front door. Rory looked at Lorelai like a deer in headlights.

"He's early" Rory said beginning to panic. Lorelai told her daughter to get a grip and to be ready because she was going to open the door and let Dean in. Rory nodded and waited in her room for him.

"Hi Dean, Rory's in her room" Lorelai said once she had let him through the door.

Dean headed into Rory's room and saw her standing there like stone. "Hey" he greeted her, kissing her on the cheek.

"Hi...um...Dean" Rory started. Dean looked at her. "Um...we need to talk" Rory told him.

Dean nodded and sat on Rory's chair by her desk. She sat herself on her bed and began.

"Dean, I um...i...we...you...i...Dean I think we should break up" she said, a little more to the point then she had intended.

Dean looked sad "why?" he asked. Rory was slightly peeved that he wanted a reason, just as she was about to answer Dean started talking again.

"It's because of _him_ isn't it?" he asked her, spitting out the 'him'. Rory just sat there, what was she supposed to say? He had put her on the spot.

"Well, um..." she didn't know what to say. She didn't want to hurt Dean and the sad fact of it was, he was right, but if she admitted it then it would just hurt him even more. She contemplated lying but all she could hear was her mother's voice floating around her brain telling her to be honest with him.

"Yes" she said suddenly. "It is because of Jess. I wanted to be honest with you and tell you now because I don't want to hurt you anymore. I know that I have been distant lately and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that it's come to this. I did love you Dean but we've just grown apart. You were a fantastic boyfriend, you were kind and sweet and funny...and" Rory was cut off by Dean standing up.

"You don't have to list my qualities Rory, I was there I know what they are. I just can't believe that this is happening because of _him_. I knew he would sink his claws into you eventually, I just thought you loved me enough to brush his flirting off, I guess I was wrong". Rory was hurt, she had dragged Dean's heart all over town and now she was ripping it out completely and stomping it into the ground.

"I'm sorry" she said almost a whisper.

"Yeah...me too" Dean replied.

With that he walked out of her room and out the back door. Rory stood in her room feeling like she had been kicked in the stomach. Lorelai walked in and over to her daughter. Rory flung her arms around her mother and started crying.

She was crying because she was losing Dean, but she was happy that she would be gaining Jess.

Just then it hit her...she hadn't asked Jess if he wanted to be with her. "Mom, I didn't ask Jess if he wanted to be with me, I didn't even out the idea in his head. What if I just broke up with Dean and Jess tells me he doesn't want to be with me?" she asked Lorelai franticly.

"Well, I guess there's only one way to find out. It's a good thing really cos' I'm dying for a cheese burger" Lorelai told her.

After drying her eyes and brushing her hair and putting in some colour free lip gloss, Rory headed to the diner with her mother so that she could talk to Jess.

As they got closer to the door, Rory could see that Jess wasn't behind the counter. They walked in and Lorelai picked out a table. After ordering Rory walked up to Luke who was standing behind the counter looking at receipts.

"Hi Luke" she said. "Hello, Rory" he replied. "Um, is Jess here?" she asked him. "Yeah, he's upstairs, I think he's sleeping. You can go up if you want" he told her. After she thanked him she headed up the stairs and to the apartment door.

She knocked on the glass softly but didn't get an answer. She knocked louder this time but still did not get an answer. Instead she opened to door quietly and peered inside.

Her heart was pounding in her chest. She looked over to Jess's side of the room and noticed that Luke was right.

Jess was asleep in his bed. He looked so peaceful, if only he didn't have all of the nasty marks on his face; it might have made the moment perfect.

Rory took a deep breath, released it and walked into the apartment, closing the door behind her.

To be continued...


	8. Setting Boundries

Chapter 8

Rory slowly and quietly walked over to Jess. She paused for a second when she noticed him stir in his sleep. He looked so peaceful and at ease. She smiled slightly as she continued to nearer towards him.

She made it to the bed and despite the creaky floor boards, Jess remained asleep.

Rory put her hand on his shoulder and shook him gently. "Jess" she called sweetly. He didn't stir. "Jess" she called again a little louder, shaking him a bit rougher. Still nothing; Rory huffed. She couldn't believe any one was that deep in a sleep.

She thought for a moment then came up with an idea. She slowly and quietly got into bed with Jess. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest and it almost hurt. She slid beside him and put her arm over his chest.

She closed her eyes and breathed in his smell. He smelt like cigarettes but she could make out the faintest smell of cologne. He smelt good.

She smiled and snuggled closer to him.

Rory had managed to drift off to sleep while snuggling with Jess. She woke when she felt him stirring in the bed.

She watched as he frowned in his sleep. She looked closely at his bruises and cuts. It broke her heart. Before she knew what she was doing she was stroking one of the cuts on his face, almost as if trying to make it better.

While doing this she was suddenly met with two brown eyes staring at her. She froze momentarily when she saw him looking at her.

"Sorry...did I hurt you?" she asked slightly worried. He shook his head saying nothing. She could see that he still looked exhausted. He had dark circles under his eyes and his eyes were red and bloodshot.

Rory dropped her hand by her side and stared into his eyes. She was lost in them, they looked like coffee beans.

Jess then shocked her by laying his arm over her waist and pulling her closer to him. "Hi" he said his voice slightly horse.

"Hi" she said back. It was silent again until Rory broke it. "I broke up with Dean" she blurted out. He looked at her but his face made no change.

She was panicked, she had blurted it out and now he was just staring at her again. Should she stay? Should she run? She was deep in thought when all of a sudden she felt his warm breath on her face.

She had no time to react as he pulled her into a deep passionate kiss. At first she was still but after relaxing she kissed him back.

After a minute or two the kiss was made deeper. Jess snaked his hand up the outside of her leg, up her back and into her hair.

She shuddered at his touch. She had never felt this with Dean. She could feel a sensation in-between her legs. She could only think of one word to describe the feeling...buzz.

Jess knew that he was doing ok when he felt Rory twitch underneath his touch. He had to hold back a smile. He was planning on slowing the kiss and breaking apart when all of a sudden he felt Rory snake her fingers into his hair.

She pulled it slightly which earn't her a soft growl from Jess. She felt the buzz get stronger between her legs and she liked it. As she felt the buzz get stronger and her body tensed, she felt her hand pull Jess's hair harder which earn't her a louder noise of satisfaction.

Jess wanted so bad to touch her in 'places' but found that he kept his hands either in her hair or on her hips so that he didn't scare her.

Rory must of read his mind when she broke this kiss and looked deeply into his eyes. He looked back and heard her whisper "it's ok, you...you can if you want to...it's ok".

Jess nodded and continued to kiss her. He waited to feel her relax again before he began.

She was lost deep in the kiss, she was getting slightly agitated when he still hadn't moved his hand from her hip. She was about to say something until she felt his hand move.

He slowly stroked his hand down her outer thigh then to her back. He kept it there for a few seconds until he slowly made his way to her butt.

He grasped the right cheek in his hand and squeezed it gently. He was granted with a moan from Rory who tightened her grip in his hair.

He could feel himself get harder and he wanted nothing more than to rip her clothes off and take her right there on the bed...but this was Rory. He knew that she had never done anything like this with Dean and he felt honoured that she was willing to do this with him.

He wanted to see how much she would let him do, so he began to experiment by touching different places.

He squeezed her butt cheek tightly then moved his hand up to her waist. He slowly slid his hand up her stomach and near her breast.

He felt her shudder as he ran his hand over her. He didn't feel her object so he took it as his queue to continue. He slowly and gently slid his hand over her and took her in the palm of his hand.

He began to massage her in his hand. Rory felt herself become wet between her legs but didn't want to stop.

She slowly moved her hand down Jess's back the round by his waist. She tucked her fingers under his shirt and slowly slid her hands up his warm toned body.

She could feel the outline of his packs and she liked it. She then went to his chest and felt the muscle. She liked it too. She then felt his nipple in her fingers.

She slowly rounded it with two fingers before giving it a light pinch. As she did this she felt Jess's grip on her left breast get tighter. She liked having him like this.

She couldn't believe she was doing this. And so soon after breaking up with Dean but she had realised that this had been a long time coming. She was enjoying this moment and didn't want it to stop.

After playing with her chest for a while, Jess began to slide his hand down her body. His hand was on her leg again. She felt him slowly turn his wrist so that his hand was on the inside of her thigh.

He began to slide it up slowly but stopped when he felt her squeeze her legs shut. He then knew that she wasn't ready for that yet.

Instead, to make her feel at ease again, he slid his hand around her leg and lifted it over his waist. He then went back to touching her butt.

Rory was thankful for this. He didn't make a big deal of it; he simply respected her boundaries and moved back to a part of her body that he knew she didn't mind being touched.

They were enjoying their intimate moment together...That was until Luke walked into the apartment.

He stood there wide eyed and watched as the two teens broke away from each other at the speed of light.

He looked from Jess to Rory and then from Rory to Jess. He then folded his arms and began.

"Ok, you two, here's what's gonna happen..."

To be continued...


	9. Arguments and Hurtful Words

Chapter 9

Luke walked forward to the two teens. He pointed at Jess "you, move over there" he told him while pointing at the arm chair across the other side of the room. He then turned to Rory "you, over there" he told her while pointing at one of the kitchen chairs.

Jess huffed but did as he was told. Rory didn't huff; she simply got up and moved as the elder man had told her too. Deep down she saw Luke as a father figure and she wasn't about to go and ignore her father's requests.

Once both teens were seated Luke began. "Ok, what was going on in here...You know what; you don't need to tell me cos I saw it for myself. You, I thought you were with Dean" he said to Rory. She looked down at the floor and said quietly "me and Dean...we broke up. Me and Jess are together now...i think".

"You think" Luke said raising his voice. "You think you're together and yet I walk in on you both doing...that". Jess was about to speak but Luke cut him off. "I'll get to you in a minute buster, until I do, be quiet". Jess scowled but did as he was told.

"So, you didn't even think to clear things up before you two got into bed with each other. If I hadn't had come up when I did, who knows what you would have gotten up too" Luke half yelled.

"We weren't doing anything" Jess told him getting angry. "What did I say, I said to be quiet. Sit there and keep your mouth closed. I'm talking" Luke replied.

Jess got up and walked forward a few steps. He was getting more and more angry that his uncle wouldn't let them explain.

"Sit back down" Luke told his nephew. Jess just shook his head. "Me and Rory were getting around to talking about stuff, right before you walked in. If you hadn't of come up here we would have been discussing recent events and talking about the outcome of said events" Jess told him.

"Jess, if I hadn't of come up then I'm pretty sure that Rory would have been following in her mother's footsteps" Luke shouted at him.

"Hey" Rory shouted while standing up. "Don't talk about her like that" Jess told his uncle. His facial expression and tone of voice made Rory uneasy.

"It's true. I don't even want to think of what might have happened if I hadn't of come up here when I did" Luke said while pointing to various places in the apartment as he spoke.

"Luke, we weren't going to do anything like...that" Rory told him honestly. "I admit, we...it got heated but I promise we wouldn't have done anything. Me and Jess...we...and i...and...".

Jess could see that she was clearly embarrassed and struggling to find the right words so he helped her fill in the blanks.

"This thing with me and Rory, it's been a long time coming. We got lost in the moment and I concur with Rory, nothing would have happened. You walking in was...unfortunate but you have to trust us" Jess explained. Rory was shocked at how grown up he was acting.

"It's not Rory I don't trust" Luke spat back.

"What the hell is your problem" Jess shouted. Why was his uncle being like this for? Jess really didn't need the agro right now. He had enough to deal with already.

"Oh please, after all the things you've done since you got to town you expect me to trust you. The lying the stealing, not to mention crashing Rory's car and..." Rory piped in "Luke it wasn't his fault, god, why does everyone keep blaming him?" she asked.

Luke chose to ignore her. "You haven't exactly done anything to make me trust you. Hell you even managed to get your ass kicked by your mom's boyfriend and I'm guessing it's probably because of something you did or said because to tell you the truth, I don't know how I manage to not nock you for six when you try and pull your crap on me".

Jess was shocked. Was he serious? Did he think that his mom's boyfriend beat him to hell because of something he did? After explaining what had happened countless times and he still chooses to see doubt and blame it on Jess. And did he really feel like taking a swing at him too. Did everyone hate him that much?

Rory gasped. She was shocked. How could Luke be so cruel? "Shame on you Luke" Rory shouted.

Jess fought to keep the tears at bay that stung his eyes. Luke realised how his words had cut his nephew up.

He didn't mean to say them; he was just shocked and mad. He see's Rory as his own daughter and he doesn't want to see her get hurt or become another notch on his nephews belt as he knows how the kid can be. However, he has to give his nephew the benefit of the doubt.

"Jess...I..." Luke began but Jess ignored him. He began to walk past him when Luke grabbed him by the wrist, momentarily forgetting how sore his nephew still was. "Get off me" Jess shouted while pulling his wrist from his uncle's grasp.

Rory watched as Jess rubbed the sore spot and turned around and continued to walk away. She stood there frozen until she heard him say "I'll walk you home". Rory nodded sadly and began to walk past Luke seeing how upset he looked.

While walking past him she said "that was so wrong". She didn't want to upset the diner owner any further but she stuck by her words. Luke had handled the situation badly.

After the teens had left, Luke sat at the kitchen table taking his cap off and running his hand through his hair. How could he have said such horrible things? He would blame Jess if he chose to never speak to him again.

Outside of the diner, Jess and Rory walked back to her house in silence. Rory didn't know what to say so she chose to say nothing.

As they got nearer, Rory could see her mother outside trying to move the hoofer around the front yard.

Lorelai saw the teens and stopped to look at them both. She saw the tears in Jess's eyes and she saw the look of upset on Rory's face and it worried her.

"Are you ok?" she asked them both.

Rory looked at her mother and out of the blue asked "can Jess stay here for a bit please mom. We've had a crappy afternoon and...i...we" she couldn't find the words.

"Ok, in ya go" Lorelai said nodding to a shocked Rory. "Really?" she asked her mother. Again Lorelai nodded. She knew that something must be up to make her daughter trip on her words and Jess looked like he was about to burst into tears at any moment.

Rory thanked her mom and headed into the house, Jess following behind.

Once inside, Rory told Jess to go and lye in her room as he wasn't looking to good. To her shock he didn't argue or refuse, he simply nodded, kissed her on the cheek and headed into her bedroom.

Rory sighed sadly. He had been through so much lately and had just started to open up and be himself again and now this.

Lorelai walked in while Rory was deep in thought and made her daughter jump when she called her name loudly.

"Shhh, Jess is asleep" Rory told her mother. "Rory, what's going on?" Lorelai asked her daughter concerned.

"I went to see Jess earlier and i...we...kissed and it got...heated and Luke walked in and told us off and he said some really horrible things to Jess and he hurt his wrist and also...he said that if he hadn't of came up when he did I would have ended up like you. I just, I can't believe he would say that and I can't believe what he said to Jess, it was so horrible...ughhh".

"Ok...ok. Let's sit down and talk about this...from the top and slower" Lorelai said while leading Rory to the couch.

"Fine! I went to see Jess and he was sleeping and I couldn't get him to wake up so I got into bed with him and I fell asleep. I woke up and then he woke up and I told him that I broke up with Dean and we started kissing and as I said before things got...heated and we were doing stuff, on top of the clothes stuff and I know what you're thinking; that it's too soon but it felt right and it felt good and I don't regret it. Then Luke walked in while we're doing the...stuff and he yelled at us and said that I would end up pregnant like you and that Jess crashed my car and that his mom's boyfriend beat him up because he's trouble and he looked so hurt and it upset me and Luke was being so mean and Jess tried to walk away but Luke grabbed him by the wrist and hurt Jess and then Jess yelled and then we left and came here and...Well, that's it" Rory finished and took a huge deep breath.

Lorelai looked at her daughter; she was processing she had said in her head. "So, you and Jess were, doing...stuff?" Lorelai asked.

"Mom, so not the point here; I'll talk to you about that later. Right now we need to talk about Jess. He's so upset and I know Jess, he would rather sleep on a bench then go back to Luke right now so, can he stay here please, just for the night?" Rory used her best pouty face.

"Rory, I don't know, i..." Lorelai started. "Please mom, he has only just started getting his life back on track and now all of this...he needs...a friend right now. Please?" Rory asked again.

"Just for tonight" Lorelai said while pointing her finger at Rory.

Rory thanked her mother and then went to check on Jess who was curled up on her bed asleep.

Lorelai joined her daughter in the doorway of her bedroom and looked at the usually sarcastic moody looking teen. However, upon observing him at that moment, he looked small and sad, even in his sleep.

Rory sighed sadly and walked into the kitchen to get coffee. Lorelai walked into the bedroom, picked up a blanket and laid it over the teen.

As Lorelai joined her daughter in the kitchen and they were about to have 'the talk', a knock on the back door stopped them.

Lorelai opened it to see an upset, uptight Luke on the other side. She moved aside to let him in and he walked over to the table. Rory just looked down; she had nothing to say to him at that moment.

Lorelai closed the door and turned to look at the diner owner. "Rory, go into your room. Luke and I need to have a chat" Lorelai said bitterly.

Sensing where this was going, Rory walked into her bedroom and closed the door. She then lent against it with one ear.

"Ok, first off, where do you get off talking to my daughter like she is some...Mary Magdalene? And where do you get off comparing her relationship with Jess to me? You have screwed up beyond comprehension and we need to sort this out so sit" Lorelai told Luke sternly.

When she saw that he was about to speak she shouted "SIT".

Luke did as he was told and waited for Lorelai to start.

To be continued...


	10. How Do I Fix This?

Chapter 10

Lorelai poured herself a cup of coffee and took a huge gulp of it before starting her talk with Luke.

She sat down at the table with him. "Lorelai I'm really sorry what I said to Rory. I was just...i'm...worried and I saw them lying there and i..." Lorelai raised her hand to stop Luke from talking.

"Luke. You did what any parent would do. It's what I would have done, maybe not actually because Jess probably wouldn't be walking right now but you get my drift" Lorelai told him.

"Having said that, I really am upset with what you said to Rory about her...about me; and what you said to Jess and grabbing him. Don't you think that the kids been through enough. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not Jess's biggest fan but I know a broken kid when I see one and when Rory brought him here earlier and I looked into his eyes. It was like the lights were on but no one was home. He was really upset. Rory too; she told me everything and to say that you handled it badly would probably be an understatement".

Luke was looking down at this point. He felt awful. "How do I fix it?" he asked Lorelai sadly.

Lorelai sighed and replied "honestly, I don't know. I don't know how Jess ticks but I do know that a simple sorry is not gonna be enough. You told him you wanted to hit him Luke. He's probably lost all trust that he had in you. Of all the men then went in and out of his life, you were probably the only one to never threaten to hurt him or physically do so, and now you're just another one of those men that he's afraid of. What possessed you to say it?" she asked him curiously.

"Honestly...i don't know. I told him to sit and he didn't, I told him to be quiet and he wasn't" he told her. "High, its Jess" she replied simply.

Luke shook his head. "I don't know why I said it. I saw them like they were and my mind went into over drive and...I don't want him to hurt Rory. She's a good kid and you know that I care for her more than I do myself and I just...i don't want her to stray because of him. I know how he can be" he told her.

"On the same note, Rory told me that she had just broken up with Dean and in the same respect I don't want Jess to get hurt. I don't want him and Rory to get together and then she decide that she wants to be back with Dean and then upset Jess by calling it off because honestly, I don't think I could handle his mood" Luke continued.

Lorelai nodded at her friend. "Luke I know you care for Rory, I really do, but the truth is. She's not a little girl anymore. I was in serious denial for a looong time about her wanting to be with Jess, even though she would deny it cos she was with Dean but I knew where her heart was. I just had to come to terms with the fact that she was me at that age ya know, liking to dangerous boy type. And I'm really going out on a whim here but, I don't think Jess would hurt Rory. I really don't. I've seen the way he is around her and I just get the feeling that she would be safe with him. You need to learn to trust your nephew more" Luke gave her a 'yeah right' look.

"Don't look like that; Luke can you blame the kid for being the way he is with what he's had to deal with? Look at what his mom's boyfriend did to him. Have you even stopped to consider that this isn't the first time it's happened? You don't know what went on in New York before he came here. Maybe he is the way he is because of something that happened there. You need to talk to him Luke. Get him to open up to you. He probably keeps you at arm's length because if he has been hurt in the past, then he's going to find it hard to open up to people. It might be harder now because of today but you know what I mean".

Luke nodded. "Now, as for Rory; Just apologise, tell her what you told me and hopefully things will be ok" Lorelai said giving him a small reassuring smile.

Luke nodded again and gave a faint sad smile back. "Thanks Lorelai, for...everything" he told her. She looked at him in the eye and smiled again "what are friends for?"

Luke stood up and went to leave, as he did, Rory came out of her bedroom having heard everything her mother and the diner owner had talked about.

Luke turned to look at her. She gave him a weak smile. He then said "Rory, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean what I said. I was...panicking and I said things I regret and..." before he could continue, Rory had stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.

He stood still at first but then reciprocated the hug. "Make things right with Jess" she mumbled into his arm. He nodded and said "I will, if he'll let me" he told her.

Rory then stepped back from the hug and said "oh don't worry, he will. Especially after I'm done with him" she then smiled again. Lorelai could see a slight devilish grin on her daughters face. She was so proud.

Luke had left just over an hour ago and Rory had gone to have a shower. Jess was still asleep in Rory's room. Lorelai got the sudden urge to go and check on him.

She slowly opened the bedroom door and saw him lying asleep on the bed. Her heart broke for the kid. His shirt sleeve had ridden up slightly and she could see the dark bruise marks on his wrist that made her wince. She took a few more seconds of observing him then left the teen to sleep.

Rory made her way down from the shower and into the front room to see her mother flicking through channels on the TV.

"Ughh, nothing is on TV. TV is dead past six o'clock" Lorelai told her daughter. She then turned to look at her. "I'm gonna go take a shower. Order a extra large pizza with everything, money's under the rabbi" Lorelai told Rory who just smiled happily at the thought of pizza.

Lorelai had been gone for about ten minutes and Rory had just got off the phone to Pete at Pete's pizza palace when she heard a loud shout come from her bedroom.

The dropped the phone onto the sofa and ran into her room to see Jess sitting up sweating and looking dazed.

She was frozen. She didn't know what to say or do. It's clear that he must have had a nightmare. She did what she thought was best.

She approached the bed with caution and sat down next to him. "Are, are you okay?" she asked him worried.

He didn't say anything. He just looked away. Rory watched as he pulled down his shirt sleeve down to cover his bruises using the sleeve to wipe tears that threatened to fall from his eyes.

"What happened" Rory asked him. Jess still didn't answer. "Jess, you can trust me. You can tell me" she told him while running her hand down his sweaty cheek.

He coughed and then quietly mumbled "it was Luke. I dreamt that what David did, but it was Luke".

Rory could see that he was barely able to speak. What a horrible nightmare. "Jess, Luke would never hurt you. You know that. What he said today...he said it because he was worried and angry...and...Worried; you know he would never do what David did" Rory noticed him tense at his attacker's name.

"Look, just, lye back down and relax. No one's going to hurt you here. Mom and I ordered pizza. I'll come and get you when it's here, just rest easy ok" she told him. He nodded at her and lay back down while letting out a shaky breath.

Rory closed her door and walked into the front room. Lorelai came down stairs, her hair wrapped in a towel and in her Dalmatian pj's.

"You ok?" she asked her daughter noticing her facial expression.

Rory nodded "yeah, Jess woke up. He had a nightmare that it was Luke that beat him up instead of David. Mom, he woke up practically screaming. I think he's finally broken".

Lorelai looked sadly at her daughter and gave her a hug.

"Once we've all had dinner, were going to sit down and talk ok. I promise I won't embarrass you and I won't grill him, we'll just have a friendly talk ok" Lorelai told her trying to cheer her up.

"Thanks mom" Rory told her.

They sat on the sofa waiting foe there pizza to arrive.

To be continued...


	11. Oh What Now?

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed. Sorry for long gap between updates but I had a case of writers block. That and a teething six month old. Here is chapter eleven. Enjoy!

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><p><span>Chapter 11<span>

The door was knocked and as on cue, Rory ran to it, money in hand to give to Joe in exchange for the pizza.

She closed the door and took the pizza into the kitchen. Lorelai got busy adding extra cheese to the food while Rory went to wake Jess up.

She walked in quietly and made her way to the bed. She bent down slightly and called his name. "Jess" she said softly but he didn't answer. "Jess" she said a little louder. Lorelai could hear her daughter calling the teens name pretty loudly.

Rory touched him lightly on the arm and could feel that he was pretty warm. She shook him gently and again called his name again but he still didn't move.

"Mom" Rory called. Lorelai came into the bedroom to see what was going on. "You ok?" Lorelai asked her daughter.

"Mom, he's not waking up and he's hot...I shook him and he won't wake up" Rory said panicking.

Lorelai walked over and moved her daughter out of the way. She knelt down next to Jess. "Jess" she called him. She didn't get an answer. She reached out and put a hand on his forehead then moved it to his cheek. He was hot, very hot and he was sweating.

"Go and phone Luke, tell him to come here right away" Lorelai told Rory. Rory looked like she was about to burst into tears but swallowed her fear and ran to the phone to call the diner owner.

"Jess" Lorelai tried again. She laid a hand on his chest to make sure he was breathing. He was but it was slow and laboured. What the hell was going on?

She then felt for a pulse on the kid's neck. She could feel a slow soft beat under her fingers.

Luke burst through the front door a little while later and followed Rory into the bedroom.

He knelt down next to his nephew and began to check him over. "Call an ambulance" he told Lorelai. Something was wrong. He felt guilty as hell. He had fought with his nephew earlier and now he was having to call an ambulance for him.

"Jess, wake up, c'mon" Luke spoke to his nephew. Jess was laying slightly on his side so Luke carefully and slowly rolled him flat on his back, it was then that he noticed a small dark patch on the clean white pillow.

He turned Rory's night light on and saw that the blotch was red and it was still wet. Luke looked at it further and noticed that it was blood.

"He's bleeding" Luke told Lorelai. "What" she said back to the shocked older man. "Look" he told her while pointing the blood.

"Where is he bleeding from" Lorelai asked as her own panic began to increase. Luke started looking around his nephew to see for any cuts or open wounds but found none. He checked his mouth but it wasn't coming from there either.

Luke then noticed that the kid had blood slowly running from his ear. "Oh god" Luke whispered.

"What, what's wrong" Rory asked stepping forward. "He's bleeding from his ear. That's...that's a common sign of...bleeding on the brain" Luke said trying to hold back the tears.

"But the doctors said there was no bleeding on the brain, they checked three times" Rory practically shouted.

A nock on the front door broke the conscious members of the room out of there staring and to the sound.

Lorelai went and opened the door, showing them to Rory's bedroom.

"Hi there; my names Don; Ok what seems to be the problem here" asked the paramedic. "My nephew, he was in hospital recently...he was beaten by his mother's boyfriend and thrown through a mirror. The doctors kept him in and said he was ok to go home now he won't wake up and he's bleeding from his ear" Luke told them while rubbing his hands together in a nervous motion.

"Alright, let's have a look here. How old is he and what's his name?" he asked. Luke told him.

"Ok, Jess can you hear me?" he asked the teen while rubbing his knuckles on the kids chest. Nothing.

Don then unfolded Jess's arms and listened to his heart and his breathing. "Ok; I'm not liking his oxygen levels or his blood pressure. How long has he been bleeding from the ear?" he asked.

"We don't know. He was sleeping for hours. I came in here at about six because he had a nightmare but he was ok. He went back to sleep then I came in here at about a quarter to seven and he wouldn't wake up" Rory told the paramedic.

He took out a flash light and shone it in Jess's eyes. "Ok, were going to have to take him in" he told them while grabbing his radio.

"Don to dispatch. I need urgent assistance. I've got a seventeen year old male. Recently released from hospital for abuse; Bleeding steadily from the ear and has unresponsive pupils. Pulse and breathing slight and laboured" he said into his radio.

"Dispatch over. Ambulance is on its way. ETA six minutes" a female voice said back. "Roger that" Don told her.

"Alright, let's get started here" Don said aloud.

He moved the pillows from under Jess's head to lay him flat. He then tilted the kids head back to open up his air ways.

He began sorting through his bag and took out a cannula to fit into Jess's hand. It took a few minutes to find a vein but eventually managed to get one.

Luke couldn't believe that this was happening. Hadn't his nephew gone through enough?

While Don was getting Jess ready for transportation a second knock came from the front door. Rory ran to it and let in two male paramedics who had bags and backboard with them.

Don explained the situation and helped the paramedics loads Jess into the ambulance. Luke took a seat next to his nephew and held his cold hand; Lorelai and Rory followed behind in the jeep.

Once at the hospital, the doctors and nurses made Luke and the girls wait in the family room while they checked Jess over.

Luke was pacing and it was driving Rory insane. "Luke, can you please stop pacing, you're making me dizzy" she told the older man.

"Cant, it helps" he replied. Lorelai huffed at his response. Rory was getting more and more agitated as time went on. "Why would they send him home and tell him that he was ok, only for this to happen. Did they not check his injuries properly?" she said, her voice rising in anger.

"Sweetie, the doctors also said that brain bleeds don't always show up right away. He'll be ok, Jess is strong, don't worry" Lorelai told her daughter.

"Don't worry?" Luke shouted. "How are we not supposed to worry? That kid has been through hell and just when he was starting to put it behind him and show signs of improvement he's back in here with far worse injuries and you're saying 'don't worry'?" He stared at Lorelai before turning away.

Lorelai stayed quiet. It was obvious that Luke still had some anger towards her for the whole situation.

As Luke was about to speak again, a female doctor walked into the room.

"Hello, I'm Dr Cartwright. Are you family of Jess Mariano?" She asked Luke who nodded. "Ok, we have given Jess some scans and there is a bleed on the brain" she told them. Rory let a squeak of fear and upset.

"Now, I don't want you to panic. It looks as though the bleed has stopped itself and there is no more bleeding from the ear; we'll keep him on twenty four hour watch to make sure that it doesn't start again and we will be doing regular scans. After giving him some medication we managed to bring him down. He's very confused and not very happy so when you see him, make sure there is no stress" she told them sensing the bad atmosphere in the room.

She showed them to Jess's room and left them to see that he was alright. They entered the hospital room quietly and looked at the occupant of the bed who looked exhausted and frustrated but still managed to hold a nasty scowl on his pale face.

Once near the bed they stopped and looked at him. "Either sit down or get out but don't stand there staring at me" he told them.

Lorelai left the room feeling as though she wasn't needed or wanted in there at that moment in time. Rory and Luke however did as Jess instructed and took a seat by his bed.

"You scared me" Rory said while taking Jess's hand in her own. "Sorry" he mumbled.

Luke looked at him and said "Jess, I'm so sorry. For everything that I said; I didn't mean it and I know it hurt you. I was way out of line and I'm just...sorry" he said sadly.

Jess nodded but said nothing. He didn't want to have this particular conversation right now.

After alot of tense and uncomfortable silence a timid nurse came into the room to tell Luke and Rory that visiting time was over. They left Jess who looked more miserable then before and walked outside to Lorelai.

They drove back to stars hollow. Luke went back to the diner and the girls went home. Rory knew a few things for sure:

1 – Luke had really screwed up with his choice of words.

2 – Jess was not ok.

3 – Relationships, both romantic and friendship had been put under strain.

4 – It was going to take a hell of a lot of effort from all four people to get back to normal.

And then Rory thought...would things ever be back to normal again?

To be continued...

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><p><strong>Please Review :-)<strong>


	12. Home

Chapter 12

It was the day of Jess's release from hospital and he couldn't wait to leave.

He fought about needing to sit in a wheel chair just to be taken to the entrance when he could walk but he was forced to sit in the chair by a bulky nurse and wheeled to the entrance.

Once in the fresh air, Jess stood quickly from the chair and walked over to Luke who was waiting by his truck.

"You need any help getting in?" Luke asked him. Jess didn't respond, he just walked around to the passenger's side and got in quietly.

Luke sighed upset and slight annoyance but got in also. The drive back to stars hollow was quiet and had made an uncomfortable atmosphere in the truck.

Once outside the diner, Jess exited quickly and practically ran up to the apartment above the diner. Luke locked the truck and walked into the diner to find the customers staring at him quietly. He stared back until they turned and continued their conversations and eating.

Luke walked up to the apartment and entered slowly. He saw Jess lying on his bed reading.

"Only just got out of the hospital and already got your head stuck in a book huh?" Luke asked with a chuckle at the end hoping to lighten the mood.

Jess again said and did nothing. "Jess, look, um...we need to talk" Luke told the teen. "No we don't" was the kid's short answer.

"Jess c'mon" Luke said again. Jess moved the book from his chest and slammed it down next to him standing quickly.

"What, what do you want to talk about" he shouted at his uncle. "Jess stop yelling the doctor said..." but he was cut off before he could finish.

"I don't care what the doctor said and I don't care what you have to say. You made your feelings pretty clear the other day" he yelled at his uncle.

"Jess, I'm sorry, I am, I didn't mean what I said, i..." Luke pleaded. "NO" Jess shouted. "I don't want to hear it" he said while walking to the door.

"Where are you going?" Luke asked him. "Out" his nephew replied. Luke looked down to the floor shaking his head.

Jess walked around aimlessly for at least a half hour before walking to the direction of the Gilmore residence.

He walked up the steps to the front door and knocked. He heard a bang and a yell then Lorelai appeared at the door and yanked it open with a frustrated look on her face and her jeans soaking wet.

"Oh, hi Jess, come in. Rory's in her room" she told the boy. As he followed her toward the kitchen area he asked "are you ok". It was barely audible and Lorelai could tell that this was his way of making an effort.

"Oh well, um, ya see, I'm not very good with lifting or balancing and well, my water bottle doesn't like me because I yell at it and I was trying to put the bottle on the tap thingy and it was heavy and then it tried to attack me by falling on me and soaking me and well here we are" she finished with a smile.

Jess couldn't help but smirk. "Do you want some help?" he asked her.

She hesitated for a moment then replied "sure...that would be great; ya know if you're ok too..."

"I'm fine" he replied, a hint of agitation in his voice. She let the quick, slightly rudely toned answer slide, the kid had gone through alot and she didn't want to gang up on him.

"Ok, well the water bottle is on the porch. Remember what I said, the bottle is evil and it heard me talking so, be careful" she told him.

Jess nodded along the whole time but was silently thinking how crazy his girlfriend's mother was.

He walked out the back door and Lorelai watched as he easily lifted it and put it where it needed to be. "Wow, you make it look so easy" she told him. He looked at her and replied "if you need it changed again get Rory to ask me before you end up killing yourself trying to do it" he told her.

Lorelai nodded then said "death by water bottle...that's a bad way to go". Jess chuckled at her remark.

Rory heard the voices and came out of her room to see her boyfriend smiling at her mother. She had to take a double look to make sure she wasn't seeing things but she wasn't, this was happening.

"Oh hey Rory, look, Jess helped me change the water bottle" Lorelai told her daughter. Rory smiled and then said "Jess, you wanna come with me to my room before mum gets you to do other jobs around the house?" she glared at her mother jokingly.

"Ok" was his quiet reply.

He followed her into her room and she closed the door behind her. Once the door was shut, she practically ran to him, flung her arms round him and kissed him deeply and passionately.

It made him slightly unsteady and he had to take a step back to regain his balance but kissed her back.

He eventually pulled back and looked at her. "What was that for?" he asked smiling slightly.

"Because, i...because I..."

To be continued...


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